Seventy-Seventh Chapter
A Contradictory Person from the Sturdy Nation
Alpha’s neighboring country, Clevideet, boasted the highest defensive capabilities of the seven nations. The Sturdy Nation received its name thanks to its unique military structure and excellently functioning magic barrier. But the biggest factor was a certain Single Digit Magicmaster.
No matter the scale of an invasion, the Fiends would never be able to breach the final defensive lines established some two kilometers away from the outermost military base—not as long as Clevideet had the ranked No. 4 “Hardest Magicmaster,” Fanon Trooper.
In terms of defense, she was just as good as No. 1 and No. 2, earning her the respect and awe of people within and outside the nation. However, while she was powerful, she had certain quirks, especially when it came to awe.
In her nation, she was cared for possibly more than even the ruler and treated as a godsend. In the military headquarters, it was routine for people to carefully select their words when talking about her, so as to not touch upon a certain absolute taboo. Therefore, the nation’s upper echelons had become better at rhetorical flourishes and flattery than any other nation’s military, because the social graciousness was necessary in order to get along with her.
Known to have a fondness for women, she looked at men as nothing more than trash. She would severely punish any careless misstep that ruined her mood. This combined to put the male military personnel constantly on edge. They would only speak in a purely formal tone when she was concerned. And no matter how lukewarm a response they received from her, they would gratefully accept it and back down.
That was how much power Fanon Trooper had in Clevideet. She was a ruler and a tyrant at the same time.
Thus, a strangely excited and clear voice rang out from inside a boutique on the lively main street of one of Clevideet’s largest cities.
“Lady Fanon! We thank you very much for your continued patronage of this store!” The female shopkeeper of the boutique rubbed her hands together and flattered the Magicmaster. “Of course, we have everything you might desire, Lady Fanon!”
The staff lined up by the shopkeeper, looking nervous. They were all gathered to entertain their distinguished customer. While it wasn’t the first time Fanon had come to the boutique, neither the shopkeeper nor the employees could get used to her visits.
It wasn’t just because she was a renowned Single Digit. There was a rumor that if she took a liking to a place, it would prosper to the point of being able to open several branch stores, but if she left without even buying a pair of underwear, the store would see a dramatic drop in customers for a while. It might have been just a rumor, but they couldn’t very well ignore it.
Recently, Fanon had visited a newly opened rival boutique across the street and left without carrying a single bag...and now it was vacant of customers and set to close down for good before long. So the female shopkeeper wiped the sweat from the nape of her neck and gave Fanon an amiable smile while signaling her employees with her eyes.
“We welcome you! The entire staff is at your every beck and call!”
The shopkeeper spoke in an excited tone but only received a languid response.
“Hmm, well, fine. I don’t really like being pushed around in this kind of boutique.” The unconcerned voice came from Fanon Trooper herself. Given her reputation, she was surprisingly petite and youthful.
Despite the clear weather, she walked around with a cute umbrella. Her clothes were very girlish, with frills and various accessories. Based on the rather high heels she stood unsteadily on, she was pretty self-conscious about her height. Of course, that was taboo, and they could never mention it.
The shopkeeper urged her staff to check on their inventory while she faced the difficult customer. Using the skills she had honed over her many years of customer service, she casually ran her eyes over Fanon to see what she was wearing today. She didn’t neglect to note the fickle customer’s facial expression and gestures.
“Oh heavens, not at all. This is a first-rate boutique, and we would never push around a customer! ‘Customer first’ is our motto! In fact, all of today’s staff are certified coordinators as well. I hope they can be of help to you, Lady Fanon...”
“Hmm, I don’t care about that. And I never ordered any coordination either.”
“L-Lady Fanon?” the shopkeeper asked after a pause. “No, uhm... Right! There are several people accompanying you today. Perhaps we might be able to find clothing for them as well! They are all very beautiful! Lady Fanon truly is like a goddess surrounded by beautiful fairies!”
Normally Fanon came alone or at most with one person to carry her luggage. But today she had five subordinates with her. They were all tall, beautiful women that Fanon must have taken a liking to.
The shopkeeper’s flattery, though obvious, pulled at Fanon’s heartstrings to some degree, and she flashed a smile. “You can tell? They’re all in my squad. But because they’re all military, they lack proper fashion sense. So why don’t you use your skills to bring out their appeal? You can even dress them up if you like. We will be going around town after this. Can I leave it to you?”
“Y-Yes! Of course!” the shopkeeper answered in a shrill voice.
Inside, she was screaming, L-Lady Fanon’s women squad!!! And five of them! This is bad, very bad! We will need to service them perfectly! Any slipup could lead to five times the anger! If that happens, I will lose my head, no doubt! Everyone, please, I beg you to consider this day to be the reason you were born and serve them with all of your being!
The shopkeeper pleaded with her staff with her eyes, and they all nodded with a sparkle in theirs. They attended to Fanon’s subordinates, wielding their flawless business smiles as they stepped onto the battlefield that would decide their fate.
The female shopkeeper saw them off and faced Fanon. In any case, gathering a wide range of products was the right decision, she thought.
Fanon’s tastes were rather different from the norm. First, she preferred clothes made with lace and frills that had an overall cute feel to them. However, she also tended to long for more mature clothing and wanted high heels to make up for her height. And from what the shopkeeper could see from Fanon’s clothes, her preference in colors had changed.
I see, so this is what her favorite colors are like now. The female shopkeeper made a mental note as she ran through the store’s inventory in her mind.
Based on the Magicmaster’s hobbies, she probably wouldn’t like coats or cardigans, but considering her height, longer tight pants were out of the question.
I more or less have a grasp of Lady Fanon’s hobbies and preferences. I even created an original brand just for her using the data I collected last time! There are no holes in my plans! the female shopkeeper thought, convinced of her coming victory.
However, in the next moment, Fanon’s eyes stopped on a display item.
“Oh, is this a new shirt?”
The female shopkeeper looked over at the item and felt like screaming.
What?! How?! She would never show any interest in that normally! The one next to it is all frilly and cutesy, the perfect kind of one-piece dress Lady Fanon likes! Ah?! Even now, she’s pretending to look at the new outfits while glancing at the dress. As I thought, that’s what she prefers! So why? the shopkeeper thought.
Perhaps it’s because she has her subordinates with her today! In that case, she must want to preserve her dignity as captain! She wants to show she doesn’t just like cute clothes but also has an eye on the latest fashion, wielding a wide range of knowledge and interests! I’m sure that’s it! The shopkeeper was now ashamed of shallowly thinking Fanon only had a single preference. In the end, she learned that she still had a long way to go.
Fanon paused before responding, “Yes, perhaps I should try it out.”
Aaahhhh! Another trial!
The shopkeeper was astonished by Fanon’s whims and a crack appeared in her business smile. Meanwhile, the rest of the staff were amiably chatting with Fanon’s subordinates.
The shopkeeper had already prepared clothes for Fanon, but this boutique’s main demographic was women in search of stylish clothes, so obviously the clothing line would suit them since they all had the tall, slender bodies of models.
However, in this situation, there was such a thing as suiting them too well. What would happen if Fanon were to try on the shopkeeper’s recommendation in this crowd of beauties? She would almost certainly compare herself to them.
That would only make her difference in height and figure all the more obvious. Fanon was much smaller than the rest of the squad members she had brought with her. The shopkeeper could tell that if she lined up next to the more adult women, Fanon would look like a child dressing up to look older.
What do I do?! If Lady Fanon gets upset at something that has nothing to do with us, there will be nothing we can do! she thought.
This boutique catered to primarily adult women. But if that focus put Fanon in a foul mood, it would be disastrous. So the shopkeeper resolved to abandon the boutique’s personality and focus on pleasing Fanon.
Then I should choose something that suits her, at least... Ah, no! I couldn’t possibly recommend the slim slacks that would go well with that shirt to Lady Fanon! How could I alter the length in front of her? Pointing out her short legs would be suicidal!
As the shopkeeper desperately racked her brain, an overly familiar and carefree voice filled the boutique. “Ah, Lady Fanon, heya. You shopping today too? We filled our stock recently, so please go ahead. Oh? Lady Fanon, that shirt’s no good. It wouldn’t suit you at all.”
Shocked, the shopkeeper spun in the direction of the voice, her bloodshot eyes opening wide.
Why... Why is she here?!
Having sensed the shopkeeper’s hesitation, a female staff member with light-brown hair and small, gold earrings had walked over to Fanon and gotten strangely close. She was someone to watch out for, which was exactly why the shopkeeper had immediately sent her home when Fanon arrived.
She was a treacherous friend among experts. She was close to Fanon at twenty-one years old, but her overly familiar attitude was out of the question. And she’d immediately dropped a bomb by saying something wouldn’t suit Fanon.
“L-Lady Fanon? Th-This person is...” The shopkeeper’s voice trembled as she attempted to make excuses. “But before that...! You!” The shopkeeper managed to keep a smile on her face as she briskly walked over to position herself between Fanon and the new employee. For the sake of her staff and her shop’s future, this rude newcomer needed to be stopped at all costs.
However, Fanon’s reaction wasn’t as cutting as she had expected.
“Hmm, you’re right,” she said. “I actually thought so too. Well, it is new so I should at least check it out.”
“That’s Lady Fanon for you!” the newcomer blithely interjected.
And that was when Fanon noticed her clothes.
“By the way, those clothes... Aren’t you supposed to be off today?”
“Well, I wrapped up early today,” the newcomer said, “but I had to be ready to serve if you, Lady Fanon, were visiting!”
“No, no, no! A-As the shopkeeper, I will see to this personally!” In a flurry, the female shopkeeper recommended herself, but Fanon entrusted herself to the newcomer instead.
The shopkeeper bit her lip.
Now that it had come to this, it was too late. Digging in any further would only upset Fanon.
She had no other choice, but she gave the newcomer a stare that said, “Do it properly.”
The newcomer only looked confused, causing the shopkeeper’s shoulders to drop. Her face now as pale as a corpse, she seemed resigned to giving up. She’d been perfectly prepared to greet Fanon, yet in the end she’d been blown up by friendly fire...
But there was a flicker of hope.
No, she is still part of our staff and she’s gone through our training. She might be a bit of an airhead with some quirks, but it’s fine! She’ll manage somehow. With this desperate thought, she looked at Fanon and the new staff member.
“Oh, Lady Fanon, I think you should get something that shows your shoulders. You don’t want to be considered childish right?” asked the staff member.
Bad topic!
Despite the shopkeeper’s heavy expectations, the newcomer had casually betrayed them in an instant. However, Fanon didn’t seem to particularly mind.
“Well, it would be similar to my battle uniform, so it’s not like I hate it. But that pile is just the things that are left unsold, isn’t it?” she asked.
Indeed, the clothes that had been recommended to Fanon were from the original brand made just for her. Their style and even the material used was overall very cutesy and not very suitable for everyday wear. As such, they didn’t sell well, especially at a high-class boutique like this one where they couldn’t display more items than necessary like a bargain sale at a cheaper store.
Yet who had lined up so many of them? They were arranged by size, but there were still just too many. Anyone would think they had been left over.
Normally, only a few pairs would be left out where customers could see them, and if necessary, a different size could be brought out from the back of the store. In fact, a good trick to use in sales was to say that they’d been mostly sold out and only this size was left. But that was not what the newcomer said.
Instead, the newcomer firmly made a declaration. “Well, they haven’t sold well. Frankly, most people let the clothes wear them. But I’m sure you would be able to pull them off, Lady Fanon! Sometimes a bold attack can be just as good as a perfect defense!”
The shopkeeper could feel her cheeks twitch at the baseless claim.
“Really?” asked Fanon. “Hmm, then I’ll take all of them.”
The shopkeeper didn’t think it was the newcomer’s assertions that did the trick, but she could see a glint in Fanon’s eyes.
“Will size S do? I think you should get them in size M too. I’m sure you will grow bigger in no time at all.”
Yet another explosive statement from her staff member made a panicky chill run down the shopkeeper’s spine. The newcomer had used a typical phrase said to customers going through their growth spurts, but surely that was a blunder.
Fanon was no child in her early teens. Considering her age, she should be long past her growth spurt, and treating her like a child was extremely rude. But Fanon reacted in a completely unexpected manner again.
“You’re right. Then I’ll take every size M you have too!”
“Thanks for the purchase!” said the new staff member.
“I think I want this hat too, but it doesn’t suit me, does it?” Fanon longingly stared at the wide-brimmed hat on the display stand beside her. It was a beautiful hat with a white ribbon, but because of the wide brim, it would look too large on the small woman. And it was something difficult to pull off, especially for one who was considered more cute than beautiful. However, she liked the high-class and mature appearance of the hat.
Mmm... The shopkeeper groaned in her mind at the sight.
From a service point of view, this was an incredibly difficult situation to handle. The best option would be to affirm their customers’ desires while guiding them towards a better alternative. The worst was to let them buy it to make them feel better. Doing so was against the shopkeeper’s policy.
What now, newcomer? How will you respond to this?! The shopkeeper held her breath as she waited to see what the saleswoman would do next.
“Ah, no worries. It’ll fit you perfectly, Lady Fanon! It’ll look super cute on you!”
“Can I try it on?” asked Fanon.
That’s awfully frivolous! How will this turn out?! The shopkeeper could barely hide the horrified look on her face as she immediately started to make a plan to patch things up.
She couldn’t afford to let Fanon’s excitement wane. With the boutique’s pride on the line, she would have to bring out a special gift from the back of the store. But would she make it...? Fanon would walk in front of a mirror any moment now. She had to hope the newcomer would buy time until then.
Completely unaware of her boss’s distress, the newcomer casually spoke with Fanon. “’Course! Oh, but before that, put this on over your clothes.”
Draping what she was given over her shoulders, Fanon headed over to the full-length mirror.
Ah, buy some more time! Hey! Why are you pushing her towards the mirror even faster?! The shopkeeper panicked as Fanon walked to the mirror.
But when Fanon saw herself, she blushed in excitement. After posing for a while, she spun around.
Huh... the female shopkeeper thought.
Surprisingly, Fanon seemed even more excited than before. She had a reputation for being hard to please, so seeing her play in front of the mirror like a child caused the shopkeeper to cover her mouth and hold back her tears.
Woooooow! It’s a complete victory! That newcomer might have some quirks, but she did some fine work! As expected from somebody I’ve seen potential in! If I ever start up another branch, maybe it wouldn’t be a bad idea to let her manage it!
Her joy was understandable. After all, Fanon was a big customer. Not only did she purchase large amounts, this time she’d even brought some subordinates with her. The profits from today might equal a normal month’s sales, and the additional publicity could be even more profitable.
“Oh, your recommendation is a pretty good combination. I’ll take this too,” said Fanon.
“Gotcha! Want us to send it to your home?”
“No, I’ll bring it back myself. That’s why we’re here in such large numbers. Besides, coming out carrying so many bags really brings out that shopping feeling.”
“I can get that. I hope today will be a wonderful weekend for you, Lady Fanon. Ah, but your companions look like this is the first time they’ve heard of it.” The newcomer pointed at a woman with light-gold hair, who was standing with her arms folded and her lips pursed.
She spoke sternly. “Just so you know, I am your second-in-command and not your pack mule, Lady Fanon. Not to mention that I always wear work clothes when going out, so I don’t need to buy anything.”
The woman furrowed her brows and sighed, but she had the kind of features that made any gesture look picturesque. She had long legs, a slim waist, and moderately full breasts. She was a first-class beauty, and even the shopkeeper, with her discerning eye, couldn’t help but be impressed.
Even the eyes she was glaring at Fanon with were striking. By her own words, she was a subordinate, but despite that, the shopkeeper saw the longing in Fanon’s eyes as she stared at her. Fanon’s interest in adult fashion probably stemmed from wanting to become like that woman.
However, it was quite literally too high of an expectation, considering their difference in height. The shopkeeper looked down at Fanon’s feet and saw the high heels that were evidence of the girl trying to make herself look taller. Unaware of the shopkeeper’s glance, Fanon sulked.
“Exceles, you need to expand your personal wardrobe!”
Exceles, Fanon’s second-in-command, looked a little troubled and answered in a quiet voice, “No, please don’t concern yourself with that. Besides, should you really be dragging your subordinates around to go shopping? When it comes to clothes and appearance, even the slightest thing can ruin your mood, Lady Fanon. Did you already forget how you went on a rampage because you couldn’t find a bra in your size at a lingerie store?”
The last bit had been in a whisper, but it had reached the ears of everyone in the boutique.
Frankly, anything related to Fanon’s bust size was a complete taboo in these circles. In fact, Fanon had quite significantly padded her modest chest today, and all of the staff were a little bothered by the slightly unbalanced and unnatural look.
“You’re not supposed to mention that!” said Fanon.
“Ah, excuse me. However, the other squad members are looking this way,” responded Exceles.
“Fine! Besides, I’m not that intolerant!”
“Then I expect you will not get upset on our way back,” Exceles said emphatically to Fanon.
Whenever Fanon went around to shop for clothing with her subordinates, they would always return with new jackets and coats, as well as slacks that made their legs look even longer. And Fanon would notice them walking with great confidence.
On top of that, they would wear sunglasses or shawls, making them look even more like models. Of course, this only made Fanon’s own fashion stand out. As a result, it was common for Fanon to get upset on the way home from a fulfilling shopping spree. That was what Exceles was worried about.
With Fanon’s attention shifted away from shopping, the shopkeeper saw her chance and stepped between the three. “May I have a moment?”
The special item from the back of the store had finally arrived. It was an eye-catcher that she’d stocked up on just for Fanon.
“I took the liberty of ordering this item because I felt that it would suit you very well, Lady Fanon. It is, of course, a limited edition. How about it? Doesn’t it feel wonderful to touch! No costs were spared for the fabric, and it’s something you won’t find anywhere else.”
Giving a trained sales pitch, the shopkeeper held out some luxurious clothes in front of Fanon. She sensed the newcomer who had hit it off with Fanon staring at her.
What are you looking at me like that for? she thought. I’m the shopkeeper. You are just staff! That’s why we should work together to...ah, it’s hopeless. She has no intention of selling this with me. Read the room, will you?!
Giving up the idea of any support, the shopkeeper began to advertise her product. She unfolded somewhat transparent clothes made of thin silk.
“This is a fantastic negligee that guarantees the best comfort when sleeping. Since it’s private in nature, you, of course, want the very best clothes in the bedroom. This is a quality for an adult lady. And this is the finest fabric you could—”
“Isn’t that indecent? No thanks,” said Fanon.
“Ah, yes, I see...”
Sure, it was pretty transparent, but the shopkeeper had thought Fanon would love it since she looked up to more adult styles.
The shopkeeper’s shoulders slumped as the newcomer interjected, “What? So that wasn’t your own stash?”
“Of course not!” said the shopkeeper.
Things looked like they could end poorly a few times, sending chills down the spines of all of the staff, but Fanon and her subordinates left the boutique satisfied. The shop, of course, saw record-high sales that day.
The city was sensitive to trends, and word of Fanon’s visit would no doubt spread by tomorrow, which meant that customers would be coming in droves for days.
But it meant more work for the staff. Next, they would put in overtime to dress the mannequins with the clothes that Fanon and her company had purchased. But it was made possible because of the staff’s hard work.
In fact, it had all worked out well because of that newcomer. She had seemed to understand Fanon’s thoughts, and the shopkeeper knew it would probably be better to have her working at the main boutique than at a branch, in case Fanon visited again.
The newcomer was completely unaware that she had missed her chance at a promotion and clocked out in a happy mood. She was permitted to skip the overtime thanks to her efforts. The sudden storm had passed the high-class boutique and left it safe.
It was less calm in Fanon’s party.
“Lady Fanon, even if you don’t make me carry it, isn’t it the same if you have everyone else do it? Shouldn’t you just have let the store deliver it to your house?” Exceles asked.
Exceles felt bad for the other squad members, but Fanon refuted her.
“What are you saying? It’s great recreation to deepen the bonds of the squad. Besides, I’m paying for everything today, and you’re all having fun, aren’t you?” asked Fanon.
“Yes, well, that is a problem too...”
Like Fanon said, nobody was complaining. In fact, they had offered to carry the luggage because they idolized Fanon—they were practically Fanon believers.
Exceles was obviously not pleased, but one of the squad members cheerfully spoke to her. “It’s just as Lady Fanon says. So why not forget your position for today and enjoy yourself! Besides, we are happy just to learn of Lady Fanon’s daily life, and it is an honor to accompany her. Not to mention, it isn’t often we can speak between just us women in the military. This is all thanks to Lady Fanon’s thoughtfulness!”
“You’re always spoiling Lady Fanon like that,” Exceles said, looking troubled.
But the other woman smiled broadly. “She even bought so much for us.”
So that’s what it is, Exceles thought and put her hand on her forehead. It was no different from being bribed. It wasn’t like the squad members treating Fanon like a princess was a new occurrence, but lately they were going too far.
As members of the military, there were usually more men around. And they didn’t have many opportunities to spend the salary they got as part of the Single Digit’s squad. So it was a good diversion.
Even Exceles had no real hobbies.
Active Magicmasters never had the time to indulge in hobbies in the first place, but Fanon was unusual in that way. Despite her busy schedule, she would find time whenever she could to go into the city.
“Still, all these women and not a single marriage proposal?” Exceles jokingly complained.
“I’m just saving up money for whenever I am to be taken as a bride,” said one squad member.
“Just finding the kind of man who’ll quietly wait for you to come home is backbreaking. And that’s with us spending less time in the Outer World than other nations thanks to Lady Fanon,” added another.
The squad members joined in one after another. Fortunately, the clamor went largely unnoticed on the busy streets. But it had been quite a while since they had last let their hair down. There hadn’t been any turnover in their ranks lately either, which Exceles hoped wouldn’t change.
As if brushing aside that melancholy, Fanon in the lead spun her umbrella and turned around in high spirits. “Who cares about marriage? Single or not, the present is fun enough. Besides, all of you would be wasted on boorish men.”
“Yeah...” a voice said in agreement, and the others nodded.
It was a peaceful day off, even if they were an elite squad under a Single Digit Magicmaster. It being one of the few metropolitan areas in the nation, the city’s residents had gotten used to their presence. Nobody made a fuss or called out to them, as they didn’t want to interrupt the people who propped up the nation’s defenses.
And since Fanon in particular was out and about often, that unspoken rule had firmly taken root in the hearts of the people.
Exceles decided to consider this, combined with Fanon’s cute appearance, a part of her natural virtue. People made way for them, but it seemed that information about the taboos had spread not just within the military but to the people of the city as well.
Despite Fanon being the highest ranked Magicmaster in Clevideet, the people pretended not to see her and gave only short greetings. The fact that nobody touched on Fanon’s youthful appearance was a huge help for Exceles. If something like that were to happen, it would be her job as second-in-command to soothe Fanon before her rage could impact the city.
But Exceles did have another concern.
“By the way, Lady Fanon. There was an emergency summons from Sir Clough, so were you fine with this?”
Clough vide Deet was Clevideet’s ruler. As the top of the nation, he bypassed the Governor-General and gave orders directly to its Single Digit Magicmaster, something that wasn’t particularly rare in the seven nations.
In Clevideet, Clough opted not to split politics and military, and kept command over both of them. Because of that, he announced military achievements rather than the Governor-General. He demonstrated the value and greatness of Magicmasters while protecting the nation’s dignity and prestige.
Because of that, the ruler would sometimes summon Fanon directly.
But with her personality, she wouldn’t accept something for nothing. She was always demanding some sort of reward, such as reserving the top fashion street just for her or allowing her personal use of entertainment facilities meant for state guests for an entire day in combination with special leave.
At any rate, the summons this time probably concerned a reward and ceremony for the recent results.
“It’s fine. I’ve accepted a ridiculous request before, having to go back and forth between the Outer World for two weeks and with all of the Fiends around—there wasn’t even time to get a proper shower. Besides, today’s my day off, so I’m not going no matter what he says!” said Fanon.
“Okay, okay, I understand,” Exceles answered.
Regardless of the mission, if she wasn’t in the mood, Fanon would throw a fuss and push her own will through. Once “No way” escaped her lips, it was no easy task to persuade her.
I am here to keep that from happening, but unfortunately, I am sort of in agreement this time. Exceles couldn’t find it in herself to dislike Fanon’s decision to keep her work and private time separate. If anything, she quite liked it.
“But what does he want?” asked Fanon.
“Ah, so you do wonder,” said Exceles.
“Well, knowing that old man, he’ll be calling for me tomorrow anyways,” said Fanon.
Exceles wondered how appropriate it was to call the ruler “old man,” but she decided to simply ignore it. “All right, let’s go into that alley. I want to hear what everyone has to say.”
With a low, serious voice, the second-in-command guided the other squad members silently into an empty alleyway and spoke up once more.
“In case you were wondering, we received an emergency report from Sir Clough. A theft happened in Area 90 recently, and confidential military supplies were stolen.”
“Area 90 is a military installation that handles magic equipment, right? So was it an inside job? I find it hard to believe that someone unrelated to the government or military could get access to a top-level security facility,” one of the squad members said.
“Apparently, it wasn’t. According to the contact I received, there was an attack from the outside.”
Everyone’s expression clouded over at Exceles’s answer. As soldiers, they all knew that Area 90 was the place where newly developed AWRs, their spares, magical tools confiscated from magical criminals, and the like were stored and managed. In essence, it was like a special armory. And if it had been attacked, then...
The squad looked concerned, and it was Fanon who asked what was on everyone’s mind. “I don’t know if the security was lax or something, but isn’t that the security forces’ fault? Why would they bring that to those of us in charge of the Outer World?”
“Being what it is, they had quite a big security force. And as you say, there’s no reason to get you involved in domestic troubles since you focus on the Outer World. However, I’m sure the ruler is aware of that as well,” said Exceles.
“Which means that there’s something fishy going on?” asked Fanon.
“Yes, it seems the culprit is on the run. There’s only a few people, even on the outside, who can not only launch an attack but also make an escape.”
Fanon casually brushed off what Exceles was implying. “I don’t care. Like I said, I have the day off! I’m not doing it!”
“In that case,” Exceles said with a sigh, “I will send the ruler an official refusal.”
“Make an official protest as well. I’ll pass on any other interruptions on my days off.”
“Yes, yes, I know. At least make sure you sign it personally, then,” said Exceles. There was no way that an answer like that would be accepted without Fanon’s signature.
I wonder if every nation is so rough with their treatment of Magicmasters, Exceles thought. Even so, she was happy that Fanon was a Single Digit Magicmaster of Clevideet.
At the very least, they weren’t threatened by invasions of Fiends and were able to peacefully spend time in the city thanks to her. But it was a strange squad, with members just as willful as Fanon, but deep down they probably found it enjoyable, just like Exceles did.
While the others were lost in such sentiment, one of the women suddenly spoke, “Lady Exceles, I think it’s fine to put a stop to this talk here. Lady Fanon’s power is meant for the wide Outer World, not for capturing some thief, right?”
The others were nodding in agreement.
“Yes, that is my concern too. Certainly when it comes to defensive forces, Lady Fanon is the pinnacle of Clevideet’s Magicmasters. Perhaps that was what they’re looking for,” said Exceles.
Fanon decided to correct that statement. “When it comes to defense, I am No. 1. I don’t know much about the other Magicmasters, but I bet that they’re all simpletons like that one from Halcapdia.”
Exceles recalled Fanon talking about how Halcapdia’s Single, Galgnis Theotort, had made a fool of himself. Apparently, he’d picked a fight with Alpha’s Magicmaster and ended up getting the tables turned on him in a huge embarrassment.
“Don’t let other nations’ Magicmasters hear you say that, Lady Fanon,” said Exceles.
“Who cares what the small fry think. Although, I guess the rank 3 and above are pretty good,” responded Fanon.
The squad members exchanged wry smiles, realizing that Fanon was starting on that again. She talked a big game, but she could back it up, so it was hard to retort. In fact, quite a few people felt that Fanon being ranked No. 4 was her being underestimated.
Any nation tends to elevate their own Singles, but there were enough reasons for Clevideet’s opinions to not so easily be dismissed. In the recent sortie, Fanon had set up a defensive line far away from Clevideet’s borders and dealt with all manners of Fiends. Exceles herself respected Fanon’s abilities more than anyone.
“Let’s just forget about this stupid work talk. Did you forget that today’s our day off?”
Everyone’s faces twitched at Fanon’s words. They were often too caught up in the details and couldn’t really relax even on their days off. At this rate, they wouldn’t get married for a long while.
“It’s our first day off in a while, so let’s enjoy it. For starters, why not get something to eat in preparation for the shopping afterwards?” asked Fanon.
“Sounds good!” said Exceles. “We can’t well go into battle on empty stomachs.”
The group agreed.
There would no doubt be a commotion caused by Fanon’s visit, but Exceles felt it was inevitable as she agreed. So with the second-in-command’s agreement, the rest of the group cheered in anticipation of a luxury lunch.
Exceles’s eyes stopped on the other side of the crowd where a large man was making his way over. He was practically a giant, measuring over two meters, and beside him was a slim man in an old military uniform.
They exuded an unusual air but didn’t give off a particularly crude impression. They moved like trained soldiers. The large man wore an overcoat that covered his massive frame, but the top of his shoulders bulged unusually. He looked well trained, but it was still abnormal.
Perhaps sensing Exceles’s suspicious stare, the large man smiled slightly. When he put his hand in his pocket, the air around them popped.
“What?!” Exceles doubted her ears. It was the rare sound of gunfire.
When she identified that sound, tension ran through her body. In this society of magic, an old-fashioned weapon like that was never used.
But this was a city full of people, and Exceles had a terrible feeling. It was the signal before all hell was unleashed.
After the giant of a man fired a single shot into the sky, it set the slim man in motion. He pulled out a gun of his own and shot a passerby between the eyes as if to make an example of them. Then he started firing wildly in all directions.
It seemed like a modernized firearm, but the barrel of the gun showed flashes of mana light as magic bullets were fired.
“A gun AWR?! Everyone, please run away!” Exceles shouted, but her warning came a little too late.
The people around them had stopped and looked in the direction of the sound, trying to figure out what was happening.
The next moment, somebody screamed.
And then, panic.
The slim man mercilessly fired at the fleeing citizens, tearing large holes in defenseless civilians. Blood spattered and stained the paved road. Before long, the street looked like a scene from hell.
The crowd never thought to fight back. They just screamed and ran. Anyone who fell was stepped on by someone who fell in turn and was also trampled. Panic spread like a wildfire.
When the next shot was fired, it was repelled by a magic barrier. On the other side of the barrier was Clevideet’s ranked No. 4 Magicmaster, Fanon Trooper, her eyes wide open.
White smoke rose from her umbrella as if it had been superheated. The surface glowed red with the magic formula for the barrier she had just created.
“Lady Fanon, I will cover you!” exclaimed Exceles.
Fanon simply glared at the two men in the middle of the panic, as if she hadn’t even heard Exceles’s words. The rest of the squad also readied themselves to fight.
Then, of the two enemies, the large man moved first. He threw away his gun and reached towards the sky. Several chains woven with mana appeared from above and shackled the necks of fleeing civilians.
The chains spread farther and farther down the streets in search of more victims. And before long, five people had been dragged in front of the man by a magical shackle around their necks. They wore anguished expressions as they desperately tried to break free, but only a Magicmaster could remove such bonds.
The large man laughed with a deep voice. “How fortunate to be able to test out this AWR in such a fun place.”
The slim man agreed. “Indeed, Warden Gordon. This gun AWR fits perfectly in my hand. It seems it can fire supercompressed bullets too.”
“That’s ‘former warden’ now,” said the man named Gordon.
“Ah, so it is. Excuse me,” replied the slim man.
“Your weapon seems useful. I think I will give mine another try. I hope my skills haven’t dulled from having nothing to do but wrangle prisoners in a small prison. Well, I have no complaints about facing a Single,” Gordon said and threw off his overcoat.
There was a long, obsidian-colored third arm on his back. That was what had made it look so swollen. The arm was large enough to grab people and had complex mechanical joints.
The next moment, the magic formula engraved in it began to faintly glow. Its crude fingers formed a giant fist that Gordon swung at the shackled people.
They curled up and screamed, tears streaming from their eyes. However, Fanon’s barrier appeared before them to protect them. But the barrier lasted less than one second against the mana-enchanted giant fist.
“Heh heh!” Gordon laughed and put even more strength into the arm, trying to crush his victims.
At that moment, the ground cracked and a shock wave blew up dust and debris. When the smoke cleared, there was a large hole in the ground. Not even flesh and bone was left of the victims.
Gordon casually pulled on the chain that was supposed to be connected to the shackles on the people, but it had been cut cleanly off.
“What’s that supposed to be, Exceles?” Fanon spoke to her second-in-command with a quiet voice and expressionless eyes.
“A violent magical criminal, it seems. With an AWR I’ve never seen before,” Exceles said and signaled the other squad members to back off.
They understood her intentions and assumed a defensive formation to protect the five civilians who had been saved by Fanon’s barrier.
“Unfortunately, we don’t have the Three Precept Contradiction with us,” Exceles said in a tense voice. She spoke of an AWR exclusively made for Fanon like her umbrella had been, but it wasn’t something she usually brought with her.
“That’s not what I am asking,” said Fanon, unsatisfied with Exceles’s answer. She was clearly in a foul mood. “I’m asking what that is supposed to be!”
By “that” Fanon meant the AWR with the power to break through the barrier of the world’s Hardest Magicmaster and let its wielder commit violence against innocent civilians. She glared at it with hatred in her eyes.
The man grinned back at Fanon.
“It’s a new type, an AWR integrated with the body. They called it Barbaros,” said Gordon.
“Tsk! Is that what was stolen from Area 90?” asked Fanon.
“Yes, modified gun AWRs and a new, top secret AWR were stolen... So it is almost definitely the gun the slim man is using and that Barbaros,” said Exceles.
Barbaros was an AWR made from meteor metal into the image of a relic from the past. This was the first time Fanon or Exceles had seen it.
In fact, the same was probably true for the rest of the squad, meaning that nobody knew how to counter it or what its true potential was.
They also couldn’t let their guard down around the gun AWR. There had been many attempts in recent years to adapt the guns of the past into AWRs, making some of the most advanced armaments available.
“And unless I misheard, the accomplice called that large man Warden Gordon,” noted Exceles.
“Who’s that supposed to be? I’ve never heard of him,” said Fanon.
“If the list of military assignments I’ve seen in the past is correct, he is a Magicmaster from our nation who was secretly assigned to a prison in the Outer World.”
Fanon had heard rumors of the Trojan Prison, which was run by all seven nations and located in the Outer World. While it was hidden from the public, it was difficult to completely eliminate rumors of it.
While each nation sent skilled people to guard it, it was too shady for someone who had ambition or prospects for promotion. Therefore, an elite like Fanon had no connection to it whatsoever.
“So a former warden? But that doesn’t matter. I’ll make sure to properly thank them for staining my day off with blood.”
Gordon smiled fearlessly at Fanon.
“I’m the one who would like to thank you. You will make the perfect guinea pig for testing out the performance of this new weapon, young lady.”
While Fanon and Gordon were speaking, her subordinates evacuated the civilians, then moved swiftly into an attack formation. As Magicmasters of a Single Digit squad, they were all first-rate Magicmasters in their own right.
The air became tense as they surrounded Gordon and the slim man. The skillful coordination and the agility of their attack was the best in Clevideet. They jumped at the two men and swung their AWRs.
“How lacking.” Despite their numbers, Gordon showed no signs of being perturbed.
In an instant, he punched one in the stomach, easily blocked the kick of another, and used Barbaros to grab the head of a third and stop them from moving. The obsidian arm glowed with the light of mana.
“Blow up,” he said.
The woman trapped between the crude fingers grinned at Gordon and with a quick snap bent her fingers. When she did, the ground on all sides of Gordon burst open as rock spears shot towards him. She had decided to take him with her.
“Pathetic,” Gordon spat out and stomped the ground. The ground cracked and the rock spears were crushed.
“Now, let’s try something else,” Gordon said, and Barbaros showed signs of constructing a spell.
“Perhaps this is more to your liking?” a squad member said, jumping behind Gordon and swinging one of her hands down. A giant lava arm traced the same path towards Gordon.
“‹‹Agni››!” she yelled.
“Taking down me and your friend huh?!” Gordon canceled the spell that Barbaros was about to discharge and pointed it behind him.
Agni was a highly complicated partial summoning spell that summoned the massive arm of a fire god, but because only a portion of the giant’s body was summoned, it was quick to activate.
Seeing the approaching mass of flame, Gordon’s eyes widened. Dodging was impossible, so he moved Barbaros to intercept it. But because he had been in such a rush and was not yet accustomed to the AWR, his posture was ruined and his body was pulled along with the momentum.
Meanwhile, Agni’s flames touched the open palm of Barbaros, where a magical core glowed. The giant arm was instantly dissolved and turned into mana particles.
“What?!” The female squad member’s eyes opened in astonishment.
Gordon, who’d already recovered, stood ready to attack when she landed. They’d tested Barbaros and been unable to defeat it, so he might as well use the claws to pierce his prey.
In that moment—
“Where are you looking?” a somewhat high-pitched girl’s voice rang out next to Gordon.
Moving just his eyes, he saw a small girl with an umbrella soundlessly stepping into his reach. “So you’re finally getting involved, are you, young lady? But you don’t look like the type to fight in close combat.”
Fanon said nothing.
Gordon was able to stay calm because of his partner. The slim man had already made his move and was pointing the barrel of his gun at Fanon’s head...
However...the moment before he could pull the trigger, there was a quick movement and he thought twice, because the tip of Fanon’s AWR umbrella was suddenly pressed into the barrel, holding it in place, unable to move. Despite her attention being on Gordon, Fanon was still aware of her surroundings.
Even if the slim man wanted to fire the gun, when he saw the mana concentrated in the umbrella, he couldn’t help but waver. If he tried to shoot, the gun and bullet might misfire and hurt him instead.
But the man paid the hesitation no mind. Out of the corner of his vision, he saw the Magicmaster who had been freed from Barbaros make a rapid retreat. He realized that Fanon had taken advantage of his pause to buy time for her subordinate to escape.
But regardless of what her goal was, he just had to pull the trigger.
The next moment, there was an explosion in front of the barrel, and he was hit by a shock wave. However, the man’s smile deepened.
Even as he was blown away, he held his military cap down and dexterously flipped in midair to land in a crouched position. He turned his smile on Fanon and stood back up.
He was practically unharmed. He had changed out the explosive bullet he was using to another kind.
As a result, while he’d been blown away, it wasn’t an explosion powerful enough to hurt him.
The barrel of his AWR was glowing red hot, but it wasn’t anything serious. In fact, it was within normal limits.
Meanwhile, the tip of Fanon’s umbrella AWR burst open like a blooming flower. It had practically been destroyed, proof of the gun AWR’s power.
The slim man hadn’t just changed from an explosive bullet, he’d enchanted the next bullet with armor-piercing properties meant to destroy hard things, and Fanon’s umbrella didn’t seem able to withstand it.
Her umbrella wasn’t able to stop the bullet, but she swung the umbrella and just barely deflected it. But in the end, the man’s choices and reaction time won out, and he was pleased with his AWR’s performance and his ability to change magic bullets.
Fanon stared at the destroyed umbrella with cold eyes, then turned to look at Gordon in front of her.
“I really liked this umbrella too...” said Fanon.
“You shouldn’t be looking away, because you’re going to break soon.” Gordon looked down and laughed at Fanon.
“Keep your stinking mouth closed, old man,” said Fanon. The next moment, something rained down on Gordon from above.
When he looked up, he saw a giant wall approaching. It was a barrier Fanon had created, and it covered an area vast enough to include the entire main street, like the sky was falling.
“You idiot! There might be nowhere for me to run, but you’re just going to get crushed too!” yelled Gordon.
“You belong below me.” Fanon didn’t look particularly worried as she brought her finger down. Changing the shapes of her barriers was simple for her.
Gordon used Barbaros to support the falling barrier, but his legs began sinking into the ground.
“Guh... I can’t hold it up!”
Of course, he couldn’t, since it wasn’t falling due to gravity. Fanon was using the barrier to drive Gordon’s massive frame into the ground. Gordon was succumbing to the entirety of the mana making up the barrier moving towards a focal point on the ground. That technique alone made Fanon’s barrier magic the greatest in the seven nations.
However, despite the situation he was in, Gordon wore a confident smile.
“How naive... This is not how you break a person,” Gordon said.
Fanon looked at him with surprise as the core in Barbaros’s palm started to glow. Then the massive barrier shattered and its fragments rained down, disappearing like ice melting in spring.
Then Barbaros’s massive arm swung down at Fanon’s small body. She dodged it with a backflip, but that was when the slim man fired on her. She stumbled a step forward to dodge the magic bullet, but the slim man had already unleashed his trump card.
A bullet of compressed air, one that was near impossible to sense, was soundlessly moving towards Fanon.
At that moment, a squad member jumped forward and stood in the way of the invisible magic bullet with earth-armored fists. However, the bullet was not repelled. It pierced the armor as well as the arm beneath it, and fresh blood spurted into the air.
Fortunately, she had swung her arm, so the trajectory changed and it missed Fanon.
“Ack! I’m sorry, Lady Fanon.” The anguished woman held her bleeding arm.
“You don’t have to do anything unnecessary,” Fanon said as mana swelled from her body due to her rage at seeing her subordinate injured. Seeing as how Fanon’s magic was more suited for such a wide area, the city could be destroyed if the fight continued like this.
The injured subordinate smiled and retreated. She knew that Fanon’s AWR wasn’t suited for fighting in places like these with lots of people to protect around.
Nevertheless, Fanon was the strongest Magicmaster in the country. With her vast amounts of mana, she would cast a powerful spell, and even half-destroyed, her umbrella AWR could assist in spell-construction.
Seeing the signs of a spell, the slim man’s sharp eyes glinted under his military cap, and he fired another magic bullet to stop her.
“Explosive Magazine. ‹‹Biamma››”
Fire spewed from the barrel as a single bullet was shot. But Fanon’s barrier completed in an instant to protect the squad members.
However, just before impact, the single bullet split into a rain of countless smaller bullets, each created with mana. Each impact resulted in a small explosion, magically destroying the barrier’s construction.
The assault seemed to go on forever, and hundreds if not thousands of magic bullets slammed into Fanon’s barrier. But rather than just hitting the barrier directly, they repeatedly ricocheted off one another in waves, giving the impression of an endless tropical thunderstorm.
In the face of that unending attack, Fanon had to cancel the spell she was constructing and precisely deploy barriers to cover all directions. As time passed, the barrier lost durability, and bullets began to pierce through. It seemed she couldn’t ignore the damage to her AWR after all.
Don’t screw with me! Fanon cursed in her mind and poured power into her arm to add additional barriers. With that she was finally able to hold back the rain of bullets. When she looked up, she saw Gordon approaching her with Barbaros’s palm open.
Fanon had a barrier around herself as well, but his goal was simple.
Mana convergence through forced cancellation...! Fanon realized.
Gordon had already displayed the power of Barbaros by disassembling and nullifying her barriers and using Agni earlier. Fanon could see what was coming from how the special core was glowing, but she was busy putting up barriers and couldn’t move.
Two of the squad members sensed that and moved to either side of her, firing advanced fire and wind magic in an attack meant to keep momentum on their side.
On the battlefield, their decision would have been correct. However...
“Get back!!!” Realizing their attack was pointless against Barbaros, Fanon leaped in front of them.
Just before the fire and wind could hit, the core in Barbaros began to glow, and its collected mana was unleashed towards them. Their two spells were quickly drowned out by a tremendous white ray of light, and a radiance of death assaulted Fanon and her subordinates.
Fanon thrust her umbrella into the ground and threw her hands forward. Exceles, who had kept out of the fighting, came behind Fanon and put her hand on Fanon’s back.
But Exceles wasn’t a healing Magicmaster, so her action didn’t seem to have any magical meaning behind it. But it did divert Fanon’s attention, and she seemed to shift her deployment of barriers.
Some of them weren’t deployed, but others were in seemingly unrelated places all around: underneath rubble, in the shade of a tree, and so on. It was difficult to understand, but regardless, the barriers were as durable as they could be.
The largest dome-shaped barrier was covered in a faintly glowing magic formula, proof that it was distinctly stronger than any barrier before it.
It had never failed to block a spell in the past, but Fanon looked visibly uncomfortable. Barbaros’s light increased, and Fanon gritted her teeth. Buildings collapsed and trees were torn up from their roots. In the aftermath, everything was left exposed.
“Ugh!” Fanon ground her teeth.
Their battle of mana continued like a tug of war...and after some time, it finally concluded. Barbaros’s mana gradually weakened and dispersed as it stopped working. But it left evidence of its terrifying power—parts of the buildings outside Fanon’s barrier had completely disappeared.
Breathing raggedly, Fanon looked at that and finally undid the barriers. Faint white smoke rose from her hands.
Seeing that, Gordon spoke to the slim man without any particular surprise. “Hmm, as expected of the world’s Hardest Magicmaster: not even that broke her barrier. I suppose it’s a matter of compatibility, but next time... Well, now I know that she’s no match for me. We’re leaving, Suzar.”
“Are you fine with that, Warden?” asked Suzar.
“How many times do I have to tell you, it’s ‘former warden’...? No matter. Besides, in the past I used to be a Single Digit Magicmaster candidate before I got stuffed into the warden role,” said Gordon.
“That’s news to me,” said Suzar.
“Yes, it’s not something I spread around. Frankly, there was a time when I was ashamed to have lost to such a little girl and been given a dead-end job dealing with prisoners. I was hoping to get rid of a long-term grudge, but I’ve lost interest. If this is what a Single is, then the position of top Magicmaster in a nation is nothing special.”
Gordon looked at his gleaming, black AWR. “More importantly, this new power, Barbaros, is wonderful. Smashing and crushing those old-fashioned rulers’ values will be fun. My business in Clevideet and this small test of Fanon Trooper is over. Continuing this rampage and killing the ruler and the top brass won’t be much of a challenge.”
“Then let’s group up with Dante. Not that he can be trusted,” said Suzar.
“What trust is there to be had in such criminals...?” asked Gordon. “Suzar, it seems you still need to shake off your rust.”
Suzar narrowed his eyes and laughed at Gordon’s words. Having been present since the beginning of the prison-escape plan, he would accompany Gordon to the end.
As he started to leave, Gordon looked behind him. Barbaros swung and erased a spell that came flying. It was a parting gift Fanon had aimed at their backs, and Gordon stopped it with a simple swipe.
“So she can fire barriers out like bullets. Maybe she’s trying to mock your gun AWR, Suzar. Or maybe she’s responsible for the prototype. Still, she has an insane amount of mana,” said Gordon.
After creating all those barriers, Fanon shouldn’t have had much mana left, but it seemed she still had some to spare.
“That’s a boring trick to throw in vain. Being able to construct spells to that degree with a half-destroyed AWR takes some impressive skill, but it’s not worth fearing. I won’t go so far to say that we are absolutely superior, but this is pitiful. I doubt we would fall behind even if we met again,” said Suzar.
“Yeah, if we were to meet that is,” Gordon spat out and slowly began to walk.
On his way, he used Barbaros to pick up some debris and toss it nonchalantly behind him. Some distance away, Fanon had the palm of her hand out towards Gordon and Suzar and suddenly sensed something flying at her at tremendous speeds. She threw up a barrier in front of her.
A stone crashed into it at an extreme speed. The spinning debris gradually drilled into the barrier and weakened it bit by bit. Eventually the barrier cracked, and the stone broke through, hitting Fanon’s forehead.
The stone was Gordon’s response to her parting gift.
Fanon collapsed to the ground, but when her subordinates rushed over, they found her looking up at the sky with her eyes open. A trickle of blood ran down her forehead.
Exceles leaned over to look at her face. “Are you okay?”
She hadn’t actively participated in the battle, but that was because her skills weren’t suited for combat. Fanon and the others all knew that, so they made no mention of it.
Well, she had made one important contribution to the battle. That aside, at Exceles’s question, Fanon’s expression crumpled, turned grim, and she roared in anger.
Her rage was simple and to the point. “I’ll kill them!”
“That last pebble did make it look like he was toying with you. But there was a difference in AWRs,” Exceles said, attempting to soothe Fanon.
“Fuck, fuck, fuck, FUCK!” Fanon spat out again. She got back up and looked around.
A trail of devastating damage had been left in Barbaros’s wake. But if not for Exceles, there would have been more dead.
When Fanon had created the large number of barriers to oppose Barbaros, Exceles’s touch had communicated with Fanon through a special skill. She’d conveyed the location of fleeing civilians.
In that instant, Fanon had defended against the radiation of mana while deploying over three hundred barriers, keeping the number of people losing their lives to a minimum. She’d protected not just her squad but countless civilians scattered behind her.
“Let’s concede this one to them and make preparations for the next time. Besides, this is what happens when you forcibly turn a fashionable umbrella into an AWR,” said Exceles.
“Hmph.” Fanon unhappily snorted before worriedly approaching another squad member.
“I’m sorry about before. Is your arm okay?” she asked. The squad member had protected Fanon against the magic bullet. It hadn’t hit her body, but it had still gone through her arm, so she wasn’t exactly unharmed.
She had a cloth wrapped around her arm now as a makeshift bandage to stop the bleeding. It was made from clothes they had just bought from the boutique.
In fact, most of the bags with clothes they’d bought had been blown away. But even if they found them, the clothes were all probably unwearable...so using one as a bandage was for the better.
“I am sorry, Lady Fanon. I let my guard down.”
“No, it’s fine. No matter what I said, I knew what you would do at times like that.”
“Then this is a badge of honor. But I’ll heal it right back up and get back to the front line!” The woman saluted and added, “Because of my injury, I will have to withdraw my request for leave.”
“Just get some rest. I’ll go beat the hell out of both of them later,” said Fanon.
“Then I will leave it to you, Captain!” the subordinate replied in a playful tone.
Fanon nodded with a smile in response before her expression turned more severe again. While she fumed, another subordinate wrapped cloth around Fanon’s forehead and burned palm as an emergency measure.
Exceles confirmed the situation and suggested what they should do next. “Let’s first get you some proper treatment, Lady Fanon.”
“Exceles, we can do that while chasing after those two,” said Fanon.
“I thought you’d say that, which is why I have already called for a healing Magicmaster,” said Exceles. “I have also contacted the military authorities, so they should be arriving soon too.”
Hearing just what she wanted to hear, Fanon smiled.
“I used my authority to bring out two of the Three Precept Contradiction. I felt that Aegis in particular would be needed.”
“Perfect. Well done, Exceles. But since you didn’t participate in the battle, you must have done more, haven’t you? You would receive a failing grade as a second-in-command if all you did was tell me the positions of civilians,” said Fanon.
Exceles sighed and nodded.
“Who do you think I am?” Exceles asked, and a strange bruise by her collarbone gradually spread to her chin and cheek.
The squad particularly respected their leader and her second-in-command. But Exceles was not just the second-in-command, she was also a spotter and ranked No. 1 at that. She hadn’t joined the battle to keep the scope of her abilities from being revealed to the enemy.
“It’s finally my turn, and I am not letting them slip away. It seems they are currently moving rapidly away. I have a perfect grasp of their location. They’re making their way to”—suddenly Exceles looked perplexed, and her face clouded over—“Alpha... They are heading towards the neighboring nation.”
Unlike civilians, as a member of the military, Fanon couldn’t go into a different nation to chase after an enemy. Since Singles were walking one-man armies, if it became known that she had entered another nation without permission, it could be considered a military invasion and would cause a serious diplomatic situation.
But going through the proper procedures to get permission would take too much time.
“That’s enough! Who cares if it’s another nation! The moment my Three Precept Contradiction arrives, we’re going after them. Besides, we can just come up with some random excuse for crossing the border, right, Exceles?” said Fanon.
“Uh...well, we are in a clear state of engagement with them, so we could make up some reasonable-sounding excuse. But it will definitely become a problem later,” responded her second-in-command.
“I don’t care! I’m not letting them get away!”
Fanon was in a terrible mood. When she was like this, it was no easy feat to stop her. Even if they tried to use force, there was practically nobody in the nation who could stop her.
That said, everyone in the squad was raring to go. None of them were mature enough to tolerate their revered captain being mocked. Even the sensible Exceles had already come up with an excuse to give Alpha, even if she did think it would be a hassle to clean up the mess afterwards.
“A Clevideet city has been damaged, and there are injured civilians. If we say we are chasing after criminals who are internationally dangerous, they should be a bit cooperative,” explained Exceles. “We could even present it as offering our help to prevent danger from harming Alpha. Considering the situation, as long as Clevideet acts in good faith, we should be able to resolve it. It’ll end up being after the fact, but if we make a request to the ruler and have her treat it as an official dispatch of a Single, then she won’t be able to ignore it politically.”
“I’ll leave that to you,” said Fanon. “More importantly, don’t lose sight of them, Exceles.”
“Of course. As you know, I have a grasp of their mana bodies, so I won’t make that kind of blunder. The other party would need to be able to get a good read on not just the flow of mana but also all the mana in their surrounding area. Either way, they won’t discover me.”
“Then we’re moving out once my AWR arrives,” repeated Fanon.
“Should we gather the rest of the squad?” asked Exceles. “I’m sure they will happily return from their vacation.”
“That won’t be necessary. Just get the ones that can move now. But do get the squad’s equipment ready by the border. And my military uniform,” said Fanon.
“Understood.”
Exceles had the wounded squad member who was withdrawing serve as a liaison to the top brass. Even without the stolen AWR, the enemy was strong enough to oppose a Single Digit Magicmaster, and if Gordon had been warden of a secret prison like Exceles believed, it was a serious matter.
It was possible it didn’t just involve Gordon and Suzar, Exceles thought, looking in Alpha’s direction.
“Speaking of... All of the clothes went to waste.”
Having decided on a course of action, Fanon had calmed down a little, allowing her to remember today’s bounty. And she looked a little sad. She’d been the one looking forward to her day off the most. She’d had a lot of fun bringing five women from her squad with her.
As her shoulders dropped, the squad members came up to her. “It’s okay. Once we clean this up, we can do it all over again. Let’s go to that store again, Lady Fanon.”
“Yes, let’s ask for consecutive days off next time. We’ll have the entire squad make a petition to the ruler,” said another member.
They were not just being considerate. They had also had a lot of fun and were sad to see it end so abruptly.
Fanon was a little overwhelmed by their kind words, and for a moment, her lips trembled like a small child, but she soon pulled them firmly together. Exceles usually thought this side of the squad members was naive, but even she felt some sympathy for Fanon.
Today even Exceles had ended up having clothes bought for her. And even though she didn’t think they suited her because they were a little too cute for her liking and not something she’d feel comfortable wearing in public, she knew Fanon had put her heart into choosing them. So they were precious to her.
Yet they had been lost in Gordon’s rampage.
“Lady Fanon, please do cheer up. I don’t know much about fashion myself, so perhaps you can pick something out for me again,” said Exceles.
“Yeah. Okay,” Fanon muttered after a moment, eyes cast down. It seemed their selfish princess had cheered up.
Exceles looked a little relieved when she suddenly sensed a presence. “Oh, it seems they were faster than I thought,” she said.
Exceles saw the squad members running over at full speed. Two of them were tightly holding a large cylinder each.
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